Two goals of this presentation: Correct Tools: How to “tweak” GA to view usable data - TRUE visitor Engagement Digging into the Data: Actionable Goals based off TRUE visitor Engagement data

1. Digging Into the Data:
Examining Resource Use on an Amateur Paleontology Website
Jayson Kowinsky
User Engagement

2. What is Google Analytics (GA)?
Google Analytics is the most popular online analytics service. It tracks various aspects of website traffic.
BuiltWith, using Quantcast data, estimates:
Top 10K 66.2% use GA
Top 100K 73.7% use GA
Top Million 69% use GA
(https://trends.builtwith.com/analytics/Google-Analytics)
It’s Free andVERY User Friendly

3. What is Google Analytics (GA)?
Google Analytics is the most popular web analytics service. It tracks various aspects of website traffic.
Audience Overview

4. What is Google Analytics (GA)?
Google Analytics is the most popular web analytics service. It tracks various aspects of website traffic.
Top Content

5. What is Google Analytics (GA)?
Google Analytics is the most popular web analytics service. It tracks various aspects of website traffic.
Realtime Overview

6. What is Google Analytics (GA)?
Google Analytics is the most popular web analytics service. It tracks various aspects of website traffic.
Visitor Locations

7. What is Google Analytics (GA)?
Google Analytics is the most popular web analytics service. It tracks various aspects of website traffic.
Age ofVisitor

8. What is Google Analytics (GA)?
Google Analytics is the most popular web analytics service. It tracks various aspects of website traffic.
Type of Cell Phone Used

9. GA gives you too much information:
It’s a Data Puke –The data needs to be properly analyzed so that actionable website
goals can be reached.
User resource use cannot be analyzed if we don’t collect meaningful data

10. GA gives you too much information:
User resource use cannot be analyzed if we don’t collect meaningful data
Unfortunately:
GA is geared toward  commercial websites
Not  noncommercial / organization / information based websites
Development of GA:
Google Adwords: 2000  Advertising for Large Companies
Google Adsense: 2003  Advertising for individual websites
Google Analytics: 2005  Website UserTracking (Clickthrough rate)

11. After 12 years of service, GA is still geared toward
advertising
Two goals of this presentation:
• CorrectTools: How to “tweak” GA to view usable data -TRUE visitor Engagement
• Digging into the Data:Actionable Goals based offTRUE visitor Engagement data
non commercial / organization / informational based websites need to measure:
USER ENGAGEMENT

12. 1. Only collect data on REAL visitors
2.Track the actual time a visitor is on your site
3.Track the amount a user scrolls down your page
CorrectTools: How to “tweak” GA to viewTRUE user Engagement
*This data, along with a few default metrics will be the only data you need collect and analyze

13. 1. Only collect data on REAL visitors - FILTER OUT BAD ROBOTS
INCAPSULA Global BotTraffic Report: 2016
(https://www.incapsula.com/blog/bot-traffic-report-2016.html)

14. Ghost Bot:
-Does not use website data (Hence the name ‘Ghost’)
-Creates a hit on analytics (Really Messes up Analytics)
lifehacĸer | motherboard.vice | buttonsforwebsites | free-share-buttons | exchangeit |
Google | site1 | event-tracking | guardlink | forum.topic | addons.mozilla | iloveitaly | …
1. Only collect data on REAL visitors - FILTER OUT BAD ROBOTS

15. Around 10% - 60% of a websites
traffic is Ghost Bot traffic
Newer websites can have up to
100% Ghost Bot traffic
THIS MESSES UP ANY ATTEMPT
AT DATA ANALYSIS
1. Only collect data on REAL visitors - FILTER OUT BAD ROBOTS
(https://megalytic.com/blog/how-to-filter-out-fake-referrals-and-other-google-analytics-spam)

16. Easy Fix in the ADMIN Section:
1. Create an additionalVIEW Property by copying your default view
2. Set up a custom “Include” Filter
3. Add your hostnames to the Filter
4. Click on BOT Filtering Exclusion Box
1. Only collect data on REAL visitors - FILTER OUT BAD ROBOTS

17. 2.Track the actual time a visitor is on your site:
Adjust Bounce Rate andTweak the GA code by adding non-action triggers
The default bounce rate and time is meaningless for studying User
Engagement:
Bounce: A Bounce is created if only one interaction occurs in a session –Time on page
is recoded as zero.
Time on Page:The time between the first action event and the last – If there is not a
second action, the visit is a Bounce.
Example: A user goes onto the website (one interaction), reads the article for 10 minutes, then leaves
the website (either closing the window or clicking on an external link). This is a Bounce AND it will be
recorded as a time session of ZERO minutes.

18. 2.Track the actual time a visitor is on your site:
Adjust Bounce Rate andTweak the GA code by adding non-action triggers
The revised bounce rate and time is useful for studying User Engagement:
Revised Bounce: A Bounce is created if the user leaves the website within 20 seconds.
RevisedTime on Page: A users time on the website is checked every 20 seconds and tallied.
How do we do this?
Add a little bit of code to your GA script:

20. 2.Track the actual time a visitor is on your site:
Adjust Bounce Rate andTweak the GA code by adding non-action triggers

21. 2.Track the actual time a visitor is on your site:
Adjust Bounce Rate andTweak the GA code by adding non-action triggers

22. 2.Track the actual time a visitor is on your site:
Adjust Bounce Rate andTweak the GA code by adding non-action triggers

23. 2.Track the actual time a visitor is on your site:
Adjust Bounce Rate andTweak the GA code by adding non-action triggers

24. 3.Track user Scrolling – It’s a great sign of user Engagement
Now that we can see how long a user is ACTUALLY on a page, we should see if they scrolled down the page.
If a user scrolls through the content of the webpage AND is on the page for
a long time, the user is most likely engaged in the content and reading.
GA does not naturally track the amount a user scrolls down the webpage.
However, through Google analyticsTag Manager, it’s easy to set up scroll tracking.

25. 3.Track user Scrolling – It’s a great sign of user Engagement
Now that we can see how long a user is ACTUALLY on a page, we should see if they scrolled down the page.
Setting up ScrollTracking - It takes 15 minutes and it’s good forever
-NewTag
-2Triggers
-5Variables

26. 3.Track user Scrolling – It’s a great sign of user Engagement
Now that we can see how long a user is ACTUALLY on a page, we should see if they scrolled down the page.
ScrollTracking Result – Data includes Bounces
*Pages with higher traffic have a higher bounce rate and naturally have less scrolling

27. Digging into the Data
Actionable Goals based offTRUE visitor Engagement data
1. Bounce Rate (Users that visit for less than 20 seconds)
Bounce rates for Informational websites are traditionally high.
Paleontology related sites fall under this category; they have a higher than average
bounce rate compared to non-informational websites.
Recommendation: Don’t worry about the bounce, concentrate on keeping users engaged, this
will naturally lower the bounce rate.

28. Digging into the Data
Actionable Goals based offTRUE visitor Engagement data
Popular Pages - What users like:
- * Anything dealing with megalodon
- * Famous Animals – mosasaurs,
tyrannosaurs, …
- * Fossil Hunting Sites that have
megalodon teeth
- * Fossil Hunting Sites / Identification
- *Very general Paleontology topics
(“What is a Fossil” “What are
trilobites”)
Recommendation: See what your page is lacking in the above list and add this content
GA SCREEEN GRAB

29. Digging into the Data
Actionable Goals based offTRUE visitor Engagement data
The Results
Unpopular Pages:
What users don’t like:
- * Any Fossil hunting blog type page
- (fossil hunting stories, personal stories,
look at what I found)
- * Unpopular / lesser known animals -
squalodon, eurhinodelphis, hemipristis,
triarthrus,
- ** MAIN INDEX –Your Front Page is
often not one of the top 5 pages.

30. Digging into the Data
Actionable Goals based offTRUE visitor Engagement data
The Results
UnPopular Pages - What users don’t like:
- Any Fossil hunting blog type page (fossil hunting stories, personal stories, look at what I found)
Recommendation:
1. Everyone likes to write about their fossil hunts. Almost no one cares. Therefore, don’t concentrate
on / spend excessive time creating really cool fossil collecting stories / blogs.
2.Your MAIN INDEX page does not receive most of the traffic. If there is important information on
that front page that you want users to see, put this information on other pages as well.

31. Digging into the Data
Actionable Goals based offTRUE visitor Engagement data
The Results
Engaged User Behavior
Behavior is different depending on the type of page:
Informational pages – HighTime on Page, Medium Scrolling, Lower Bounce
Collecting Site pages – MediumTime on Page, Medium Scrolling, Lower Bounce
Main and Sub Index pages – LowTime on Page, Little Scrolling, Less ReturnVisits, Higher Bounce Rate

32. Digging into the Data
Actionable Goals based offTRUE visitor Engagement data
The Results
Engaged User Behavior
Users don’t like to read:
Recommendation: Users don’t like to read. Make sure there are plenty of graphics
spread out on each page. Add a quick summary / main points to the top of the page –
keep these a tweet or less in length.

33. Digging into the Data
Actionable Goals based offTRUE visitor Engagement data
www.fossilguy.com/analyzethat